The United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia is composed of four district judges, three senior district judges, three full-time magistrate judges and one part-time magistrate judge. District judges are appointed under Article III of the Constitution by the President of the United States, with the advice and consent of the Unites States Senate. District judges are appointed for life, and they can only be removed through the impeachment process. Magistrate judges are judicial officers appointed by the judges of the distrct court for eight-year terms and are assigned duties as outlined under Local Rule 73.